Vehicle.



APPLICATION FILED MAY 2, 1910.

LLUL'@ n/es 6 es J. CHARTER.

VEHICLE.

Patented Mar. 19, 1912.

JOHN CHARTER, OF WHITMAN, MASSACHUSETTS.

VEHICLE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Mar. 19, 1912.

Application filed May 2, 1910. Serial No. 558,962.

i and its object is to provide novel means of mounting an upper structure, such as a body, upon running gear by spring tenslon members adapted to maintain the body at substantially one position whenever the wheels of the runnin gear suddenly rise or fall by reason of stri 'ng an obstacle or entering a depression.

rlhe usual method of mounting a body u on running gear is to connect the body directly with the running ear by means of springs which permit the ody to r1se and fall vertically with relation to the running gear. The result of such direct spring connection when the wheels of the running gear pass over an obstacle or enter a depression 1s to incline the bod to a degree commensurate with the incllnation of the running gear. The body is therefore subjected. to successive jolts or jounces, and the riding qualities of the body are therefore seriously impaired.

The resent invention is carried out by supportmg the body upon mclmed struts pivotally connected to the running gear and connected to the body by spring tenslon ymeans adapted to preserve the inclination of the struts and tending to swing the struts upwardly. The struts are preferably ar- Iranged in pairs, each pair extending along one of the four sides of the body and beneath the same. The struts which extend along the side ed es of the body are preferably attached to t e front and rear axles by pivots, those attached to the front axles bel' lng also connected to the rear of the body,

while those attached to the rear axle are likewise attached to the forward end of the body. By thus connecting the struts, each with one end of the running gear and with the op osite end of the body, the forward part of) the running gear serves as a base or Ysupport for the rear end of the body, while the rear end of the running gear serves as a base or support for the forwardl end of .the

body. Now, therefore, whenever the front wheels of the vehicle are suddenly raised orl permitted t0 drop their vertical movement is not permitted to affect the forward end of the body, because that end of the body is not supported by the forward end of the running gear but is supported by the rear end of the running gear.

The struts Vwhich extend transversely under the forward end of the body, and those which extend transversely under the rear end of the body may .be constructed and arranged in the same manner as those which extend longitudinally of the body under the side edges thereof. In this way, the righthand side of thc body is supported by the left-hand side of the running gear, while the left-hand side of the body is supported by the right-hand side of the running gear, consequently the body is supported at all sides by spring tension connections which to a great extent prevent the transmission to the body of sudden upward and downward movements of the wheels.

Referring now to the drawings which illustrate one form in which the present invention may be embodied: Figure 1 represents a side elevation partly in section of the running gear and body of a motor car, the representation being more or less conventional and omittinr the usual equipment. Fig. 2 represents a fiont end elevation partly in section of such motor car. Fig. 3 represents the longitudinal section on a larger scale of a spring tension plunger such as those included in Fig. l.

The same reference characters Aindicate the same parts wherever they occur.

Although the drawings illustrate the invention as applying to a motor car, it should be understood that it is not adapted exclusively for a vehicle of this type but that it may be applied to horse-drawn vehicles as well, and that the motor'car is selected merely for the purpose of illustration and not for limitatlon.

On the drawings the body or upper structure of the car is indicated at 10, and the front and rear wheels at 1l and 12 respectively.

13 and 14 indicate respectively the front and rear axles and constitute members of the usual running gear.

1t should be understood that no attempt u has been made to illustrate all the necessary parts of the running gear, but that only s0 much of the running gear is illustrated as is necessar in order to make it clear how the body 1s supported thereby. For the I ingl along one of the longitudinal sides of air in the barrels when they are moved inI the body. There will, of course, be` a pair of such struts ateither side of the vehicle. The strutsy 15 are pivotally/connected at 17 to the front axle 13 and are inclined upwardly therefrom toward the rear end of the body. Struts 16 are likewise pivotally connected at 18 to the rear axle and are inclined upwardly toward the' forward end of the body. At the upper endsof the struts are yokes or forks 19 which are pivotally connected by studs 20 to plungers 21 and 22. The plungers extend horizontally through cylindric barrels 23 and 24V which are supported by the body. The barrels are provided with bearings 25 and 26 in which the plungers are adapted to slide, the bearings 26 being removable and adjustable by reason of being screw threaded in the barrels. Each plunger is provided with a fixed piston 27, the pistons fitting the interior of the chambers with a fair degree of accuracy so that they are adapted to compress the either one direction or the other.

Each barrel contains a pair of helical springs which are indicated respectively at 28 and 29, the springs 28 being the supporting springs for the body and the springs 29 being recoil springs to cushion the upward movement of thebody. The ends of the plungers 21 and 22 where they are pivotally connected with their respecq ltive struts may be provided with rollers 30 arranged to roll upon the under surface of plates 31 carried by the body, the purpose of the rolls being to prevent lateral iiexure of the plungers due to `upward thrust of the struts. A

Referring now to Fig. 2, 32 indicates a barrel extending transversely of the body directly above the front axle. This barrel may be divided midway between its ends by an abutment 33, thus forming two chambers indicated respectively at 34 and 35. Bearing pieces 36 are screw threaded in the ends of the barrel and are centrally bored to receive plungers 37 -and 38. v'.lhe plungers are pivotally connected at 39 to yokes 40 affixed respectively to thev upper ends of the struts 41 and 42 which are inclined upwardly from the right and left ends of the axle. The lower ends of the struts are connected to the axle by pivots 43, said struts being crossed in the same relation as the struts 15 and 16 which support the4 longitudinal sides of the body.v The inner ends of the plungers 37 and 38 are provided with pistons 44 which are engaged by supportingsprings 45 and 46 on the one side and by recoil springs 47 and 48 on the other side. 'The supporting springs are compressed between the pistons and the respective end ybearings 36, while the recoil springs are compressed between the pistons and abutment 33. The plungers are. provided with rolls 49 which engage the under surface of the plates 50 carried by the body and serve the same purpose as thatl prescribed for the rolls 30.

From the foregoing description it will be apparent that when a wheel suddenly rises or falls by reason of striking an obstacle or entering a depression the corresponding corner of the body will not rise or fall with the wheel vbut will be supported at its former position byits respective longitudi- Y nal and transverse" struts. Of course, the

body will eventually assume a position ap-v to constant upward or ldownward move-` ment unless all of the wheels of the vehicle rise and fall at the same time'.

The movement of the ybody is cushioned not only by the several springs but also by the cushions of air in the several barrels.

The barrels may be providedl with vents as shown by Fig. 3 and with throttling members to restrict the vents to the desired capacity. In Fig. 3 'a nozzle is indicated at 51, said nozzle being formed upon the barrel 24 and provided with a bore through which air may be expelled to the atmosphere or through which it may be drawn in. 52 indicates a screw-threaded throttling member by which the vent may be opened or closed to the desired capacity. The barrel may also be provided with a vent 53 through which .air may enter or leave the chamber on the opposite side of the piston 27.

If desired, each of the piston chambers i The adjust-ment of the spring tension may be effected by the screwfthreaded mem- Y bers 26 of the longitudinal b arrcls and by the members 36 of the transverse barrels.

rlhe rear end of the body is" provided with supporting means like that described for the forward end of the body. lHaving thus explained the "nature of my said invention and described ,al way of constructing and using the same, althou h without attempting to set forth all t e forms in which it-may be made or all the modes of its use, what ll claim is A vehicle comprising a running frame;

a pair of longitudinally-extending struts at toward t each side thereof, one strut of each pair being ivotally connected to the forward part of) the running frame and inclining upwardly toward the rear, the other struts being pivotally connected to the rear part of the running frame and inclining upwardly toward the front and crossing those connected to the front; two transversely extending struts pivotally connected to one side of the runnmg frame at the front and rear resplectively and inclining upwardly e other side; two transversely-extending struts pvotally connected to the other side of the running frame at the front and rear respectively and inclining upwardly in the opposite direction so as to cross the first-mentioned transverse struts; the free ends of said longitudinal struts being close to the free ends of said transverse struts over the corners of the running 20 In testimony whereof I have affixed my 2."

signature, in presence of two witnesses.

JOHN CHARTER. Witnesses:

W. P. ABELL, JAS. H. CHURCHILL. 

